Dr. Konrad Bachhuber to head $1.5 billion Wacker plant in Charleston

The head of production for Wacker Chemical operations in China will start his management Thursday of the $1.5 billion polysilicon plant that Wacker is building near Charleston, Tenn.

Wacker announced today that Dr. Konrad Bachhuber, a chemist who has worked at Wacker for the past 22 years, has been appointed vice president of Wacker Polysilicon in Bradley County. Bachhuber is responsible for the overall site management of Wacker's polysilicon plant now under construction.

"Of primary importance and focus will be oversight of the start-up production phase following completion of the plant's construction scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2013," Wacker said in an announcement from Dr. Ingomar Kovar, president and CEO of Wacker Chemical Corp.

After receiving a chemistry degree, and doctorate in physical chemistry in 1989 from the University of Regensburg, Germany, Bachhuber joined Wacker as laboratory manager at the company's Burghausen plant. In 1994 he progressed to plant manager for the central pilot plant and in 1998 was promoted to director of central chemical services and basic chemicals. In 2002 he was named director of production polysilicon and held that responsibility until 2006 when he was appointed vice president of production polysilicon. In 2009 through November 2011, Dr. Bachhuber was vice president of operations for Wacker Chemicals Greater China.

"We are extremely delighted and fortunate to have someone of Dr. Bachhuber's caliber join Wacker's management team here in North America," said Dr. Ingomar Kovar, president and chief executive officer of Wacker Chemical Corp. "He already has extensive experience and involvement with four of our company's polysilicon expansion projects."

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